Firework
by Indigo Callahan
Summary: A Can't Hold Us one-shot. It's the 4th of July! And, just like countless other holidays, it deserves to be celebrated. It deserves to be remembered. So watch as Lily and the gang celebrate America's holiday. Not a great summary, but hopefully the story makes up for it. Stay safe, my friends! Make good choices but still have plenty of fun. :)


_'Cause baby you're a firework_  
 _Come on show 'em what your worth_  
 _Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh!"_  
 _As you shoot across the sky-y-y_

-Firework; **by Katy Perry**

* * *

"This'll be exciting," Lily said, looking at the scenery around her. Sam had helped her in making the perfect 4th of July celebration. It had been a while since either of them had done anything like that, and they were beginning to feel a bit nostalgic. Ron and Judy, as well as Lily's parents when they were alive, had taken them to _countless_ parties when they were younger - safe ones, mind you - and they grew up watching fireworks and all the merriment that came with it. For the teens, it was a time to remember. Lily had very fond memories of when her parents would take her to see the fireworks, to see family members to celebrate the 4th. It was something the teen held close to her heart. For her, it was something she could see as precious. That was one of the reasons why she thought of a celebration. Lily sent out invitations to anyone she wanted to come, and she was happy to see how many were interested in appearing.

"Yeah," Sam answered, crossing his arms over his chest. "It's been a while since we've done something like this."

"It's hard to believe how much time's gone by." A heaviness weighed down on Lily for a moment, thinking back to her parents. It was always hard, having to remember that Francis and Rosalia were dead. It was _very_ hard, remembering that so many of the things Lily did with them were in the past. All she wanted to do was see them again, but that wasn't possible.

"You OK?" Sam asked; looking at his cousin worriedly.

Shaking her head for a moment, the teen shoved the thoughts from her mind. She couldn't dampen her mood, right before the party would begin. "Yeah, I'm fine," she answered. "Do we have everything?"

There was a moment's pause before Sam answered. "Yeah," he said. "All we're waiting on is a few things from ma and dad, then we'll be all set."

"That's good," Lily sighed. "The guests should be showing up any minute now; hopefully Ron and Judy get here before them."

 **-0-0-0-0-***

The location for the celebration was at the lake. Since it was public property, it made sense to hold it there. While plenty of other people had the same idea, the area Sam and Lily picked out was a bit secluded. They could enjoy themselves without the disruption of other people. The sight of the lake was very nice, and the air was cool. Not only that, but seeing the fireworks go off over the lake was beautiful, especially during sundown. The setting sun reflecting off the water, combined with the lights the fireworks gave off, made everything seem almost _magical_. For Lily, that was the main reason she chose the lake - the magical feeling it'd give off.

For a lot of the people who'd be showing up, they'd admitted to never seeing a firework show at a lake before. That was _another_ reason to hold the celebration there. It would make a memorable experience for everyone!

"You're sure it's a good idea to bring _every_ one here?" Judy asked. She and Ron had come not even five minutes after Sam and Lily's little talk. They had brought alcohol for the adults, and soda and juice for the younger audience. Sam's idea had been for the soda, Lily's idea had been for the juice. At least that way, everyone would be satisfied with _some_ thing. Lily had brought a few snacks and gave Sam money to buy the fireworks. He'd come back with some firecrackers and whatever the best 'works he could afford were.

"Yes," Lily said, rolling her eyes in exasperation. "I know this used to be a _family_ tradition, but our family's grown a little."

"I understand how you _see_ it that way," Judy pointed out, "but aliens and soldiers? I just don't understand..."

"They're friends, Judy," Sam said. "I know it's hard to comprehend, trust me. But they're still friends."

"I don't think we'll _ever_ get used to this," Ron sighed, looking almost defeated. "I wouldn't have _believed_ in this kind of thing if I hadn't seen it for myself."

"We know," Lily said, a light chuckle behind her words. She and Sam knew _very_ well how hard it was to believe aliens were real. If anyone had asked them years ago they'd befriend an alien race, they would've laughed hysterically. All those years ago, the cousins, undoubtedly, did not believe in the existence of aliens. They found it to be ridiculous. But then the Autobots and Decepticons showed up, and everything _changed_. Sometimes for the good, other times...for the bad. But memories were made nonetheless.

"Mikaela should be coming soon," Sam said, putting some alcohol on a nearby table. "Aren't your friends coming, too, Lily?"

"They are." Alex and Angel were close friends of Lily's, and she'd tried inviting them to the New Year's party she held before, but they weren't able to make it. With them being able to attend the 4th of July celebration, it meant the world to Lily. To her, it felt like she'd been spending less and less time with her friends. "I'm happy," Lily said. "It's felt like forever since I've seen them."

"They're good kids," Judy said, nodding in confirmation.

"They really are," Lily chuckled.

 **-0-0-0-0-**

As the night progressed, guests started to show up and get themselves comfortable. Like Lily said, Alex and Angel were the first to arrive. They helped finalize setting up the area, and by that time, everyone else started showing up, too. Lennox, Sarah, and Annabelle came not too long after, the small family happy and more than willing to introduce themselves to Lily's family. While they were already familiar with Sam, they hadn't met Judy or Ron. After Lennox and his family came Epps and _his_ family. The one thing that made the night less special, however, were the lack of Autobots. Bumblebee was there, obviously, as was Ironhide. It was only Optimus and Ratchet who couldn't make it.

"They had a lot of work they needed to finish," Lennox had said, "but Optimus wanted you to know he'd be here if he were able."

In Lily's opinion, that was more than enough. She understood that the Autobots couldn't be involved in every human holiday or tradition, no matter how badly she wanted them to be. Just knowing that they'd be there in _spirit_ was more than enough.

"So how're you guys holding up?" Lily went over to where Bumblebee and Ironhide were, the two Autobots having activated their Holoforms to blend in. While Lily would've liked for them to be in their bipedal forms, she knew that couldn't happen at the lake. It was public property, other people were currently occupying the area, as well.

"I have to say, this isn't bad," Bee said, smiling. The Holoform for the scout looked exactly how Lily would imagine he'd be as a human. With a youthful appearance and mischievous eyes, it was hard to imagine how he could be an alien robot. "Humans know how to make anything a party, I'll give you that."

"I'll have to agree with the little glitch," Ironhide grumbled, playfully nudging Bee. "You humans will come up with an excuse to celebrate _any_ thing."

"That's just how we are," Lily giggled. She turned to look at everyone else, who seemed to be having the time of their lives. Epps' eldest children were throwing firecrackers or running with sparklers. Annabelle, being so young, wasn't allowed to play or handle those in any way, Sarah made sure of it. That seemed to upset the young child, who wanted nothing more than to do what the other kids seemed to be doing. "Are you guys excited to see the fireworks?" Lily asked. "I think you guys may have seen a few during the New Year's party..."

"Yeah," Ironhide agreed. "I've done a little research on this _4th_ _of_ _July_. You humans seem to hold it in high regard."

"Well, _obviously_ ," Lily said. "It's one of the biggest holidays here."

"These fireworks are pretty impressive," Bee said, bouncing on his heels. "I've been hearing them go off all day."

"People really get into the spirit."

"I'll say," Ironhide said.

"So what do we do now?" Bee asked.

"Socialize." Lily looked at the two Holoforms with a hint of a smile on her face. "Talk to everyone. It's not like you don't know anyone here."

"I've yet to meet your aunt and uncle formally," Ironhide huffed. "I suppose I could introduce myself to them."

"Go ahead, they're nice."

"They get a little anxious around me, though," Bee sighed. "So I'd be careful around them."

"For the _most_ part, they're nice," Lily said. "Just try not to spook them, OK?"

With a gruff grumble, Ironhide squared his shoulders and made his way over to where Ron and Judy were standing. For Lily, she found herself feeling a bit happy at the thought of the weapons specialist introducing himself to her aunt and uncle. At least that way, they'd be acquainted with _almost_ all the Autobots.

 **-0-0-0-0-**

The celebration ventured well into the evening, with the party-goers having interacted rather pleasantly for the duration of the time. Ron and Lennox helped with getting more food and providing it to anyone who wanted it. When the kids started getting a little restless, that's when it was decided the fireworks should begin. It seemed as though the other lake-goers had the same idea, too. It was dark enough, too, for the fireworks to give off an even more spectacular show.

"How about we get this show on the road, huh?" Ron announced.

The sounds of approval rang through the small crowd.

For Lily, she stood next to Sarah, who was holding her daughter on her hip. Initially, the small girl's behavior was grumpy, whimpering and wriggling. But when Ron announced the time for the firework show, Annabelle was quickly distracted. All the fireworks were set up near the lake, in an attempt to avoid any kind of damage that might be caused on the ground.

"This is probably the most fun I've had in a while," Sarah said, looking at Lily with a small smile.

Looking at the older woman with a hint of surprise, Lily gave a small smile in return. "Really?" she asked. "I would've thought you and Lennox..."

"Being in the military, Will doesn't have a lot of time for us." There was a hint of disappointment in Sarah's voice, which broke the teen's heart. "I know he's doing what he's doing for us, but I also know that the Autobots are just as important."

"I'm sure this'll all even itself out soon enough."

With a slight chuckle, the older woman nodded. "I get that," she sighed. "I'm just hoping it's soon. Annabelle's growing up _now_ , and I'd like Will to be there for that." There was a moment of silence between the two before Sarah spoke again. "I shouldn't be complaining," she said, adjusting Annabelle on her hip. "We're having a good time tonight. We should enjoy it."

"It's OK to vent every once in a while," Lily said. Her gaze went over to Lennox for a moment. He was talking to Sam about something, the two laughing over whatever it was they were discussing. "But, and this is my opinion, maybe you could talk to Lennox about it. I'm sure he'll understand."

"I don't want to complain or anything." Sarah waved the notion off. "Besides, tonight's not about complaining or dampening the mood. The fireworks will be going off soon; let's enjoy that."

With a small smile, Lily nodded. Her gaze went over to where the fireworks were placed. A flutter of excitement overtook her, causing the teen to shift a little where she stood. Without even having the opportunity to light their own first, fireworks from other lake-goers were sent off, exploding into the sky in a wide array of colors. It was almost hypnotizing, seeing the lights reflecting off the lake. While the sounds themselves seemed almost deafening, the visuals made up for it.

Taking some time to recover, Sam chose to light off the fireworks, watching as each one exploded into a beautiful display of colors over the lake. It seemed as though, in that moment, time slowed down. Nothing else seemed to matter. The _booms_ of the fireworks didn't seem so loud or deafening after a minute, once everyone's ears had the chance to adjust. The lake seemed to explode with just as much color and amazement as the fireworks. It made everything seem so magical, so _otherworldly_. It was nice. And to see the looks of fascination on Bumblebee's and Ironhide's faces, even in their Holoforms, it was still a memorable sight. For Lily, it was one she'd treasure forever.

* * *

 **(A/N):**

 **First off, I'd like to apologize for the wait on this one-shot. Secondly, I'd like to apologize on how poorly written it is. Lastly, I'd also like to apologize on how I haven't updated Can't Hold Us in forever, but I chose to do a one-shot for the 4th of July. I thought I could at least do this to make up for the lack of a new chapter on my other Transformers story. I know a lot of you have probably been waiting forever and a day for something to happen on Can't Hold Us, and I'm so, so sorry I haven't updated it in a while. If you guys can forgive me on that, I'd greatly appreciate it.**

 **I own nothing in the Transformers fandom. All I own are my OCs, my subplots, and the summer classes I'm currently taking. That's right, I'm in my first week of summer quarter. And I know that's no excuse for my lack of updating, but I felt the need to share it. Anywho, if you've got ideas for OCs or subplots, PM me or leave a review. I'd greatly appreciate, my friends.**

 **Also, give constructive criticism on this. I'm very unhappy on how it turned out; I had one thing planned, but it turned out like... this. But I'll leave it up to you guys.**

 **One last thing, if you've got ideas for future one-shot ideas regarding Transformers, let me know! I'd love to write something on it. That's all I've got to say on that.**

 **On that note, I'll wrap this one-shot up. I'm ready to be done with it!**

 **Be kind to one another, don't text and drive, and I hope your 4th of July was amazing!**

 **Many blessings,**

 **Indigo Callahan**


End file.
